Tree harvesting apparatus

ABSTRACT

An improved tree harvesting apparatus is adapted to be mounted on a vehicle and includes a shear assembly for severing a tree. A grapple is mounted on a common base with the shear assembly and is selectively operable to grip a severed or felled tree. A single set of positioning cylinders is selectively operable to move both the shear assembly and grapple relative to the ground to facilitate positioning them in a desired relationship with a tree which is to be either severed or gripped. Another set of positioning cylinders is selectively operable to raise both the shear assembly and grapple to a nonoperating or over-the-road position.

nited States Patent White 1 51 May 30, W72

[54] TREE HARVESTING APPARATUS 3,487,864 1/1970 Larson et al. ..144/34 R[72] Inventor: as B. white Bloumsmwn Fla 3,531,235 9/1970 Boyd et al.144/34 E [73] Assignee: Eaton Yale & Towne Canada Limited, Primary -Ge ad A. Dost London, Ontario, Canada Attorney-Yount and Tarolli [21] Appl'50593 An improved tree harvesting apparatus is adapted to be mounted ona vehicle and includes a shear assembly for sever- 52 us. c1 ..144 34 E"*8 a A grapple is mounted 3 base 51 Int. Cl ..A0lg 23/02 Shea assemblyand is Selectively Perable griP Severed [5 Field of Search 144 2 Z 3 D34 R 3 E 34 F ffillfid tree. A single S8! Of positioning cylinders isselectively 4 4 6 operable to move both the shear assembly and grapplerelative to the ground to facilitate positioning them in a desired rela-[56] References (med tionship with a tree which is to be either severedor gripped. Another set of positioning cylinders is selectively operableto UNITED S TE PATENTS raise both the shear assembly and grapple to anonoperating or over-the-road position. 3,382,899 5/1968 White ...l44/34E 3,468,352 9/1969 Larson et al. ..144/3 D 7 Claims, 3 Drawing FiguresPatented May 30, 1972 3,665,985

2 Sheets-Sheet l FIGI TREE HARVESTING APPARATUS The present inventionrelates generally to a tree harvesting apparatus and more particularlyto a combination tree shear and grapple.

It is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved treeharvesting apparatus which includes a tree shear which is mounted on acommon base with a grapple for gripping a tree severed by the shear.

Another objectof this invention is to provide a new and improved treeharvesting apparatus which is compact and includes a tree shear andgrapple wherein the same piston and cylinder arrangement is selectivelyoperable to position the shear relative to a tree to be severed and toposition the grapple relative to a severed tree which is to be gripped.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved treeharvesting apparatus which includes a shear assembly having a bladewhich is moved upon operation of an actuator to sever a tree and agrapple which is mounted on a common base with the shear and includes anactuator for effecting pivotal movement of a gripper arm to grip a treesevered by operation of the shear.

These and other objects and features of the invention will become moreapparent upon a consideration of the following description taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a partially broken away pictorial view of a tree harvestingapparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view illustrating the tree harvesting apparatusof FIG. 1 in a nonoperating or over-the-road position and, in dashedlines, in an operating position; and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view illustrating the relationshipbetween a grapple and shear mechanism of the tree harvesting apparatus.

A tree harvesting apparatus constructed in accordance with the presentinvention is illustrated in FIG. 1 in association with a rear section 12of a known type of articulated vehicle 14. Although the tree harvestingapparatus 10 is advantageously mounted on the rear of a vehicle, it iscontemplated that the tree harvesting apparatus could, if desired, bemounted on the front of the associated vehicle. The tree harvestingapparatus 10 includes a tree shear mechanism 18 for severing or fellingstanding trees. A severed tree 20 is gripped by a grapple 22 which ismounted on a common base assembly 24 with the shear mechanism 18. Oncethe severed tree 20 has been gripped by grapple 22, the vehicle 14 canbe driven to skid or drag the tree 20 to a suitable location for furtherprocessing.

It is contemplated that the vehicle 14 will be driven to a work locationwith the tree harvesting apparatus 10 in the nonoperating orover-the-road position illustrated in solid lines in FIG. 2. When thetree harvesting apparatus 10 is in this position, the shear mechanism 18and grapple 22 are in a raised and inwardly retracted position closelyadjacent to the rear section 12 of the articulated vehicle 14. Thisfacilitates driving the vehicle over rough roads and through woodedcountry without snagging or bumping the tree harvesting apparatus 10with trees, stumps or other objects.

Once the vehicle has been driven to a work location at which a standingtree 28 is to be severed, a support frame 32 of the base assembly 24 islowered by extending positioning cylinders 34 and 36 (see FIGS. 1 and2). Extending the positioning cylinders 34 and 36 pivots parallelsupport arms 38 and 40 from the nonoperating position shown in solidlines in FIG. 2 to the lowered position shown in dashed lines in FIG. 2and in solid lines in FIG. I. It should be noted that operation of asingle set of hydraulic piston and cylinder assemblies 34 and 36 resultsin both the tree shear l8 and the grapple 22 being lowered from thenonoperating or over-the-road position.

Once the support frame 32 has been lowered to the operating position ofFIG. 1, a base section 42 is pivoted to a desired operating relationshipwith the standing tree 28 by extending piston and cylinder assemblies 44and 46 from the retracted condition shown in solid lines in FIG. 2 tothe extended condition shown in FIG. 1. The rearward or rod ends of thepiston and cylinder assemblies 44 and 46 are pivotally connected to thebase section 42. The forward or cylinder ends of the piston and cylinderassemblies 44 and 46 are pivotally connected to upwardly projectingsupport posts 47 and 48. Therefore, extending or retracting the pistonand cylinder assemblies 44 and 46 results in the base 42 being pivotedabout connections 50, 52 and 54 relative to the support frame 32. Theposts 47 and 48 are fixedly connected to a platform 56 extending betweenthe arms 38 and 40.

Connections 50, 52 and 54 comprise stop type hinges. The hinges 50, 52and 54 include hinge brackets 50a, 52a, 54a welded to the base section42. These brackets have a heel portion which engages the platform 56when the piston and cylinder assemblies 44 and 46 are extended. The heelportion 540 of the bracket 54a is shown in FIG. 3. As a result, theframe 56 and shear are a solid link, and the load is at least in partsupported by the platform 56, thereby relieving the load carried bycylinders 44, 46. The cylinders 44, 46 can be locked in their extendedposition and the larger cylinders 34, 36 used to pivot the entire unit,as desired.

The tree shear mechanism 18 and grapple 22 can be positioned in adesired relationship with a tree to be operated on in hilly or roughcountry by merely effecting the proper operation of the piston andcylinder assemblies 34, 36, 44 and 46. Thus, the platform section 56 ofthe support frame 32 can be positioned at different levels relative tothe ground by merely extending or retracting the piston and cylinderassemblies 34 and 36. Once the support frame 32 has been located in adesired relationship with the ground, the positions of the tree shear l8and grapple 22 can be adjusted relative to the ground by merelyextending or retracting the positioning cylinders 44 and 46. Thisenables the base section 42 upon which the tree shear mechanism 18 andgrapple 22 are mounted to be angled either upwardly or downwardlyrelative to the support platform 56 by pivoting the base section aboutthe connections 50, 52 and 54. The limit of upward movement of the basesection 42 is determined by the stroke of the cylinders 44, 46, and thelimit of downward movement is determined by the engage- .ment of theheel portion of brackets 50a, 52a, 540 with the platform 56. Since thesame pistonand cylinder assemblies 34, 36, 44 and 46 are utilized toposition both the tree shear mechanism 18 and grapple 22, the treeharvesting apparatus 10 can be mounted in a compact relationship withthe vehicle 14.

A tree shear mechanism 18 is mounted on the base 42 with the grapple 22and includes a movable blade 60 which cooperates with a fixed blade oranvil 62 to sever or fell a standing tree 28. To sever a standing tree,the shear mechanism 18 is actuated by extending a piston and cylinderassembly 64 which is pivotally connected at 66 to the base 42 and at 68to the movable blade 60. The movable blade 60 is also pivotallyconnected to the base 42. Therefore, extending the piston and cylinderassembly 64 results in the movable blade 60 being pivoted toward thefixed blade or anvil 62. As the movable blade 60 approaches the fixedblade 62, a cutting edge 72 on the movable blade 60 is forced throughthe trunk of the standing tree to thereby sever the tree. The generalconstruction and operation of the tree shear mechanism 18 is known perse and described my U.S. Pat. No. 3,382,899.

Once the tree has been felled or severed by operation of the shearmechanism 18, it is frequently necessary to drag or skid the tree to alocation some distance from the place where the tree was felled. Toaccomplish this, the grapple 22 is operated to securely grip a trunk ofthe felled tree. The tree is then skidded or dragged to the distantlocation by driving the vehicle. When required by roughness of theterrain or other considerations, the shear mechanism 18 can be raisedslightly above the ground by selectively operating the piston andcylinder assemblies 34, 36, 44 and 46. Of course, this also raises thegrapple 22 so that a trunk of the tree gripped by the grapple is angledupwardly to facilitate skidding or dragging of the tree.

The grapple 22 includes a gripper arm 78 (see FIGS. 1 and 3) which ispivotal to an open or release position, illustrated in solid lines inFIG. 1, in which the grapple is movable into engagement with a felled orsevered tree 20 and a closed or gripping position, illustrated in dashedlines in FIG. 1, in which the grapple 22 securely grips the tree. In theillustrated embodiment of the invention, the gripper arm 78 is pivotallymounted at 80 on an upstanding support post 82 which is fixedlyconnected to the base 42. A piston and cylinder assembly 84 is mountedbetween opposite side sections 86 and 88 of the support post 82. Thisenables the side sections 86 and 88 of the support post 82 to shield thepiston and cylinder assembly 84 against engagement with the limbs ortrunk of a fallen tree.

Once a tree has been severed or felled by operation of the shearmechanism 18, the vehicle 14 is moved rearwardly along one side of thetrunk of the fallen tree 20. The tree harvesting apparatus is then movedsidewardly toward the trunk of the tree by pivoting the vehicle 14. Thisresults in an outwardly projecting tongue or support section 94 (seeFIG. 3) being forced or cammed under the trunk of the tree 20. Thesupport tongue is fixedly connected with the base section 42 and assiststhe operator in engaging the tree. Simultaneously with this engagementof the tree with the tongue 94, the piston and cylinder assembly 84 isextended to pivot the gripper arm 78 from the open or release positionshown in solid lines of FIG. 1 toward the closed or gripping positionshown in dashed lines at FIG. 1. This movement of the gripper arm 78causes the trunk of the tree to be pulled inwardly against arcuategripping edges 98 and 100 (FIG. 3) formed on the side sections 86 and 88of the support post 82. The tree is then securely gripped between thesupport post 82 and the gripper arm 78. Of course, the tongue 94 willassist in supporting the gripped tree.

The piston and cylinder assembly 84 for moving the gripper arm 78between the open and gripping positions, is pivotally connected at 104(FIG. 1) with the base section 42. The rod end of the piston andcylinder assembly 84 is pivotally connected at 106 with the gripper arm78. Therefore, upon operation of the piston and cylinder assembly 84from the retracted condition shown in solid lines at FIG. I to theextended condition, shown in dashed lines in FIG. 1, the gripper arm 78is pivoted about the connection 80 as the piston and cylinder assembly84 is extended.

The trunk of a tree which is gripped by the grapple 22 extends forwardlyalong the side of the vehicle 14. If the trunk of the tree was angledforwardly and inwardly, the tree would engage a rear wheel 1 10 (FIG. 1)of the vehicle and would tend to be vibrated or shaken loose from thegrapple 22 as the vehicle 14 is driven to skid the tree along theground. To prevent this from happening, the tree is angled slightlyoutwardly away from the wheel 110 of the vehicle by a stop orpositioning section 114 (FIG. 3) which is fixedly mounted on the base42. The positioning member 1 14 includes a stop bar 116 which is locatedoutwardly, in a sideward direction, of the edges 98 and 100 of thesupport post 82. Therefore, when the trunk of the tree is moved intoengagement with the edges 98 and 100 of the support post 82, the treetrunk also engages the stop bar 116 and is angled slightly outwardly ofthe vehicle to provide clearance for the wheel 1 10.

When the grapple 22 is being moved into engagement with the severed tree20, the severed or butt end of the tree may be disposed at such an anglethat the tree harvesting apparatus 10 is moved sidewardly and rearwardlytoward the end of the tree. If this occurs, the end of the tree couldtend to enter between the grapple of 22 and the positioning member 114.To prevent this from occurring, a deflector plate arrangement 122 isprovided between the grapple 22 and the positioning member 114 (see FIG.3). The deflector plate arrangement 122 includes a shield or guard plate124 which is fixedly connected to the support post 82 and the base 42.The shield plate 124 prevents the end of the tree from sliding betweenthe support post 82 and the positioning member 114 onto the base 42. Acam plate arrangement 126 is angled rearwardly toward the shield plate124 and is connected with the shield plate in such a manner that the endof the tree will be cammed or pivoted outwardly by engagement with theplate 126 to position the tree for engagement by the stop bar 116.Continued movement of the tree harvesting apparatus toward the tree willthen result in the tree being swung into the desired relationship withthe grapple 22 and with the wheel of the vehicle 14.

When the felled or severed tree 20 has been skidded or dragged to alocation where it is to be released, the piston and cylinder assembly 84is retracted and the gripper arm 78 is pivoted upwardly to the positionshown in solid lines in FIG. 1 to release the tree 20. The positioningmember 114 is then utilized to kick or swing the tree outwardly awayfrom the grapple 22. This is accomplished by pivoting the vehicle 14 insuch a manner that the grapple 22 is moved sidewardly away from the treeand the stop bar 116 pushes or throws the tree outwardly away from thegrapple 22.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the grapple 22 includesonly a single gripper arm 78 which is pivotal relative to the base 42.However, it is contemplated that the grapple 22 could include a pair ofpivotally mounted gripper arm which would be capable of oscillatingrelative to the base 42. In addition, it is also contemplated that thetree harvesting apparatus 10 could be mounted on the front of a vehiclerather than the rear of the vehicle as shown in the illustratedembodiment of the invention.

From the foregoing description, it could be seen that the treeharvesting apparatus 10 includes a tree shear 18 for severing a standingtree. A grapple 22 is mounted on a common base with the shear 18 and isoperable to grip a tree severed by the shear. The tree shear l8 andgrapple 22 are both positioned relative to the ground and a tree to beoperated on by the same piston and cylinder assemblies 34, 36, 44 and46.

Having described a specific preferred embodiment of the invention thefollowing is claimed:

1. Tree harvesting apparatus for use in association with a vehicle, saidapparatus comprising a base assembly adapted to be connected to thevehicle, shear means mounted on said base assembly for severing trees,said shear means including at least one movable blade connected to saidbase assembly and shear actuator means for moving said blade relative tosaid base assembly to sever a tree, grappler means mounted on said baseassembly for gripping a tree severed by said shear means, said grapplermeans including a gripper arm mounted for pivoting movement relative tosaid base assembly between a release position and a gripping positionand grappler actuator means for pivoting said gripper arm relative tosaid base assembly from the release position to the gripping position togrip a tree severed by operation of said shear means, and a positioningmember fixedly connected to said base assembly at a location betweensaid grappler means and the vehicle for engaging a trunk of a severedtree to position the tree trunk in such an angular relationship withsaid base assembly so that the tree trunk extends alongside the vehiclein a spaced apart relationship with the vehicle.

2. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 1 further includingpiston and cylinder means for pivoting said base assembly relative tothe vehicle to move said shear means and said grappler means relative tothe vehicle between an operating position and a nonoperating position.

3. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidgrappler means includes outwardly extending support means fixedlyconnected to said base assembly for supporting said gripper arm forpivoting movement between the release and gripping positions, saidsupport means including first and second spaced side sections, saidgrappler actuator means being mounted intermediate said side sectionsthereby providing protection for said grappler actuator means againstengagement with a tree severed by said shear means.

4. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein saidgrappler actuator means includes piston and cylinder means operativelyconnected with said base assembly and said gripper arm, said piston andcylinder means being extendable blade, said piston and cylindermeansbeing extendable and retractable to effect pivoting movement ofsaid blade relative to said base assembly independently of pivotingmovement of said gripper ann relative to said base assembly.

7. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 1 further includingdeflector means fixedly connected with said base for engaging an endportion of the tree and deflecting the end portion of the tree towardsaid positioning member.

1. Tree harvesting apparatus for use in association with a vehicle, saidapparatus comprising a base assembly adapted to be connected to thevehicle, shear means mounted on said base assembly for severing trees,said shear means including at least one movable blade connected to saidbase assembly and shear actuator means for moving said blade relative tosaid base assembly to sever a tree, grappler means mounted on said baseassembly for gripping a tree severed by said shear means, said grapplermeans including a gripper arm mounted for pivoting movement relative tosaid base assembly between a release position and a gripping positionand grappler actuator means for pivoting said gripper arm relative tosaid base assembly from the release position to the gripping position togrip a tree severed by operation of said shear means, and a positioningmember fixedly connected to said base assembly at a location betweensaid grappler means and the vehicle for engaging a trunk of a severedtree to position the tree trunk in such an angular relationship withsaid base assembly so that the tree trunk extends alongside the vehiclein a spaced apart relationship with the vehicle.
 2. Tree harvestingapparatus as set forth in claim 1 further including piston and cylindermeans for pivoting said base assembly relative to the vehicle to movesaid shear means and said grappler means relative to the vehicle betweenan operating position and a nonoperating position.
 3. Tree harvestingapparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said grappler means includesoutwardly extending support means fixedly connected to said baseassembly for supporting said gripper arm for pivoting movement betweenthe release and gripping positions, said support means including firstand second spaced side sections, said grappler actuator means beingmounted intermediate said side sections thereby providing protection forsaid grappler actuator means against engagement with a tree severed bysaid shear means.
 4. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 3wherein said grappler actuator means includes piston and cylinder meansoperatively connected with said base assembly and said gripper arm, saidpiston and cylinder means being extendable and retractable to effectpivoting movement of said gripper arm relative to said base assembly. 5.Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said baseassembly includes an outwardly projecting portion located beneath saidgripper arm for at least partially supporting a severed tree gripped bysaid grappler means.
 6. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim1 wherein said shear actuator means includes piston and cylinder meansoperatively connected with said base and with said movable blade, saidpiston and cylinder means being extendable and retractable to effectpivoting movement of said blade relative to said base assemblyindependently of pivoting movement of said gripper arm relative to saidbase assembly.
 7. Tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 1further including deflector means fixedly connected with said base forengaging an end portion of the tree and deflecting the end portion ofthe tree toward said positioning member.